Sorry, this movie sucks

Don't Believe the Hype

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Damn, Koreans can make great films, just like their Japanese, Chinese and Taiwanese counterparts. "Ring Virus" has to be one of the greatest Korean horror films besides "The Whispering Corridor" series.Sure it may be somewhat simple in the Special Effects department, but that usually does work the best when working with supernatural horror films. This one, as well as many Japanese horror films and an earlier Korean techno-horror film called "Screen Sairen", "Ring Virus" as well as "Ringu" has quite an original plot. An accursed video tape is being spread around and people who don't copy it and share it or live a lonely life, will die.And Unlike the US version of "The Ring", the video shown in this movie is not a typical rip-off of a Marilyn Manson music video. Instead, it seems to start off with being rather kind and innocent, yet abstract looking, which makes things much more terrifying. The settings of the film are quite excellent. The scenes filmed on the Cheju Island, is quite lush looking and beautiful, I started to wish I was on the Korean islands.Heck, I just wanna go over to South Korea, PERIOD! If you can find this film, please get it. I know it is hard to find, but it is worth it, much more than the US version.PS, Du-na Bae, the young adult actress who plays Eun-suh, is quite creppy looking, as well as gorgeous!

To all of you who feel let down by this film, I'd like to point out that every one of you have had great anticipations about how it would be. Films like Blair Witch and Ringu are in my oppinion the very best the horror genre has to offer, but they require your immersion to have any effect.Just knowing too much about a film like this can be enough to ruin it for someone who's not a regular horror film fanatic. How many of us have a friend who went to see Blair Witch in the Cinema during the height of the hype, and came back dissapoined not understanding what all the fuss was about?. How can you immerse yourself in a movie with no real special effects, no tempo, no humor and no sex?. The only thing these movies have to offer is horror and that horror in turn more than makes up for other shortcommings, but in order to be frightened you have to play along with the movie, that is accept the absence of all the things you usually find in hollywood blockbusters. If you can't do that, the movie will not be frightening and if it's not frightening, there is nothing else to keep you interested.So my suggestion is, if you want to see Ring, Blair Witch (or films like space odyssey 2001) make sure you know why. If you want popcorn horror dont rent this movie, cause you'll hate it. Watching a movie just because someone said it was the best movie ever, severely reduces the chances of you enjoying it. If you want to watch a movie that has a great albeit slow story, no special effects or anything else you'd expect in a high profile film, you will be mortally terrified by the Ring.

After all the ecstatic reviews for this film, I was rather disappointed by this film. Supernatural horror films are not usually my sort of thing, but I'm always willing to give something a try. The film was, though, certainly better made than many others of this genre that I've seen, but I still didn't find it very frightening, or, in the end, very convincing.Perhaps I'm missing something.

(Maybe a SPOILER in here) I finally saw Ring recently after wanting to see for ages. I wasn't completely disappointed, but I thought it could have been better. Don't get me wrong, as a piece of film making, it is outstanding, well acted, well paced and beautifully shot. As a horror movie, I felt it lacked, I don't know, intensity. There were a couple of genuinely terrifying moments. The opening scene is almost unbearably tense, and the well scene towards the end is one of scariest movie moments of all time, the feeling of abject evil is palpable. However, I felt that the movie explained too much. A big part of horror, and what makes it scary, is the unexplained. Thats why films like the Blair Witch Project and The Haunting are so frightening, you don't know what's going on. Ring kinda blows this with too much exposition. That said, the gloomy atmosphere and the spooky video scenes are certainly unsettling, and at least it isn't I Know What You Did Last Summer. The remake will suck, I assure you